The Moonlit Reunion
by Agentlebreeze
Summary: It's Heiji and Kazuha's wedding, and Ran is struggling to be happy for them. But what happens when a certain someone plans to cure her of that loneliness? And what is his plan? Lots of Shinichi x Ran fluff! **EPILOGUE UP!**
1. The Woes of her Loneliness

"_You may kiss your bride"_

Thunderous clapping filled the church as Heiji bent down and passionately kissed Kazuha. Much to everyone's amusement Sonoko let out a shrill whistle, which caused Kazuha and Heiji to break up their kiss both of their cheeks flushed scarlet.

"What?" she scoffed in response to Ran's glare. "It took Heiji decades as it is to realize what he felt for Kazuha was love. Last time I checked didn't he used justify his feelings for her by calling her his follower?"

Ran smiled. Even after Heiji finally realized that he loved Kazuha, his cowardliness would not allow him to tell her, in fear of rejection. It had taken Kazuha grabbing him by the collar and kissing him full on the mouth _just_ to realize that she reciprocated those feelings. If only Shinichi would show up and tell her that he loved her too.

_Shinichi_. Just the thought of his name sent ripples of agony through Ran. She missed his cockiness, his passion for mysteries, and his determination for justice. She missed his azure blue eyes, and the way his hair seemed to always be styled perfectly to match his angled face. She missed him so much that a hole had been torn open in her chest which could never be filled by any other.

When Conan was here, he had numbed the ferocious pain which would claw at her chest every day. He reminded her so much of Shinichi that it was hard for her to think of him as a little six year old boy, and not the Sherlock Holmes freak that she had lost. Conan was like a drug to her. She depended on him to keep all the hurt, anger and frustration that threatened to tear her apart at bay, make her forget the feeling of dying inside. He had sewn up the hole in her chest, dulling the pain until all that was left was scars.

But now Conan was gone. His mother had come back from America about a year ago, saying that it was time for him to settle down with them, that she had got a stable job and was able to support him now. Conan had left with her quickly barely leaving her time to say goodbye. The pain which he managed to numb off then came back in a vicious fury, gnawing at the hole which had nearly been healed off. Nothing had meaning anymore. She went along her daily life, but she couldn't muster up the energy she once had. Everything just felt _dead_. Even her high school graduation didn't hold much excitement for her. According to Kazuha, Heiji had disappeared at the same time as Conan, though he had come back just two weeks ago and proposed. _Proposed_. Ran hadn't seen Shinichi in a good three years, and Kazuha was already married. If only…

"Ran? Heelloooo! Ran, are you there?" Sonoko asked, an extremely annoyed expression crossing her face.

"Sorry what did you say?" Ran asked. "I was just…thinking. Can you repeat what you just said?"

Sonoko sighed. "Ran, this isn't healthy. You've been like this since Conan left! You need to snap out of the depression phase, and start getting your life back!"

Ran flinched. "I do have a life! I talk to you and Kazuha all the time!"

Sonoko shook her head. "Whatever you say Ran. Anyway, as I was saying, there is going to be a moonlight dance at the reception of the wedding. You are going whether you like it or not."

Ran gave her a sideways look. "Why? What are you planning?" She asked suspiciously.

"I'm getting your life back," Sonoko said, with a smirk. She spun around and stalked away, her blood red dress trailing behind her.

Ran let out a gush of air. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

"All clear," Sonoko whispered into a Bluetooth. "She doesn't suspect a thing"

The man on the other side of the Bluetooth smiled enigmatically, his vibrant blue eyes alive with anticipation.

"Let the plan commence."

* * *

O.o** Who is on the other end of the line? And what will happen at the moonlight dance?**

**Read chapter two when it comes out to find out!**

**xoxoxo thanks for reading,**

**~Agentlebreeze**


	2. The Second Stage of his Plan

"I'm so happy that you're here Ran!" Kazuha gushed, her eyes bright with excitement as she greeted her in the reception line.

"I'm glad to be with you on your big day," Ran said, smiling.

Kazuha looked striking to say the least. She wore a strapless swan white dress which accented her slender frame, then swiveled out in layers at the bottom. Many of boys in the room were openly gawking at her, only to be glared at by Heiji almost instantly. Ran stifled a laugh. One of Heiji's arms was wound possessively around Kazuha, and the other he used to greet guests.

"He must really not want to let her go," Ran mused. "It must be a nice feeling."

Sensing Kazuha's eyes on her, Ran looked up to see Kazuha looking at her expectantly. "Sorry, did you say something?" she asked.

"So this must be what Sonoko meant when she said Ran was really out of it today," Kazuha thought. "Well at least she has _that_ which will cure her of this depression phase."

"I just asked if you liked the reception decoration," Kazuha said. "When Shizuka heard we were wedding planning, she went all out. She was furious enough as it is that we waited 3 days to tell her."

Ran giggled. "I bet she hated you for that."

Heiji laughed, joining in on the conversation. "She told me that if we had waited one more day to tell her, she would have disowned me. Then she whisked Kazuha away to plan "the perfect wedding" according to her. Not being able to see my own fiancé for three weeks is what she thought was fair punishment.

Ran snickered. "I'm sure it was painful."

"Well I can torture Kazuha as much as I want to now that we're married," Heiji replied smirking.

"HEIJI!" Kazuha shouted, and then blushed beet red as everybody in the room turned and stared at her.

Heiji laughed heartily, and Ran laughed with him. Detecting that the people behind her in line were getting impatient, Ran told Kazuha and Heiji that she would talk with them later, and moved on.

Getting out of line, Ran exhaled. It was so hard to maintain a happy façade when she felt like she was breaking to pieces on the inside. But no matter what she did, she could not ruin Kazuha's big day. It was not her fault that Shinichi had decided to go missing, and not show his face for three years.

"Isn't it your best friend's wedding dear? Why so gloomy?"

Ran spun around and almost crashed into the person behind her. Looking up she saw an abundance of caramel curls and striking blue eyes.

"Those are _his_ eyes," she though, clutching her chest.

"Ran chan? Are you okay?" Yukiko asked, concern flooding her face. This wasn't good. Her future daughter in law looked as if she was going to faint any minute now.

"I'm okay, thanks," Ran responded, trying to ignore the stabbing pain in her chest that was making her light headed. "What brings you here Yukiko san?"

"Actually Kazuha and Heiji invited me," she admitted. "I must say, Shizuka did a lovely job with the wedding organizing! Everything was exactly to my taste."

Ran nodded trying to smile.

Yukiko winced. Her son's disappearance had really taken its toll on her. Ran had shadows under her eyes that weren't there before, as well as a visible weight loss that she hadn't needed. Thank god today would be the day for _that_ to happen, or she might need to have a firm talking to with her Shin-chan.

As the reception line dispersed, the doors leading outside were opened and everybody began to wander outside for the dance where a band was set up and playing a smooth jazz tune. Kazuha and Heiji took the first dance, with expressions of pure bliss on their faces.

"Ran chan why don't you go dance? It's a beautiful night, which is only fitting for a stunning girl like yourself," Yukiko said.

"I really don't really know-"

"Go Ran chan, and have fun while you are still young!" Yukiko ordered ignoring her protests.

Ran sighed and headed towards the doors, planning to just sit and watch other people dance. There was really no arguing with Yukiko.

* * *

Yukiko grinned contentedly and then grabbed the blue tooth in her ear.

"Stage two of the plan complete. She's headed your way," she reported gleefully.

The man's eyes twinkled as he got prepared for his part of the plan. It was going to be a very _interesting_ night.

* * *

**O.o Yukiko just had to get involved(;**

**Hope you liked it! Please R&R, it is much appreciated!**

**~Agentlebreeze**

**xoxoxoxo**


	3. The Plot in the Garden

Ran wandered toward the garden where the dancing was taking place, and stopped to admire its beauty.

"Shizuka san must have spent a great deal of time with the decoration of this place," Ran thought to herself.

The band was set up on a small stage with Wisteria hanging from overhead and was now playing soft classical music. At the center of the garden was a large exquisite marble fountain with water pouring down from a miniature bride and groom at the top. Golden vines were strung across the surrounding trees with Chinese lanterns hanging off them, illuminating the night sky. Glass ornamental decorations were scattered throughout the garden, with lavender and honey suckle intertwined around them. Fireflies flew through the garden, completing the majestic appearance.

The garden was like a setting from a Disney movie, in which the prince would sweep the princess of her feet and they would live happily ever after. Except Ran would never have a fairy tale ending.

Sighing, Ran walked over to the nearest bench and plopped herself on it, and with nothing else to do, began to observe the couples dancing. They all looked so blissfully self-occupied that it actually hurt to watch them. She and Shinichi were supposed to be like that. He was supposed to be by her side right now, twirling her around in circles around the garden, not away on some stupid case. He was supposed to be like her Peter Parker, her Edward Cullen, and her Romeo. Shinichi was supposed to be by her side, constantly protecting her from danger while making her laugh every day. But instead she had to deal with his aggravating mysteries always being the third person in their relationship. If it was a choice between her and a mystery, he would always place the mystery before her. He even decided to leave her alone for three years while solving "_a big case."_

The only thing that had made his long absence acceptable was Conan. Conan had always somehow snuck up on her and cheered her up when she was feeling upset, and made her feel complete again when she felt ripped apart. It was as if he could read her mind. Nevertheless Conan too had left her alone, with not even a way to contact him. A tear leaked from the corner of her eye.

Damn it. She promised herself she wouldn't cry today. It was Kazuha's and Heiji's big day. She couldn't afford to selfishly go back into the depression which had overtaken her when Conan left. She began to take deep breaths and struggled to regain her composure.

"Yukiko san was wrong," she thought. "This beautiful night is not suited for somebody as heartbroken as I. I mar its serenity and elegance with my inner turmoil."

As Ran got up to leave, a voice onstage stopped her. Turning to look, she saw Heiji holding the microphone with one hand, and other his arm snaked around Kazuha possessively.

"He still hasn't let her go," Ran thought dryly to herself.

"Ladies and gentleman, if I could please have your attention," Heiji said with a secretive smile. "We would like to offer a special event which is unusual for weddings, but then again, many of you have probably heard of what a mystery freak I am."

The crowd chuckled. Heiji's love for mysteries was well known among the audience. It could be easily compared to Shinichi's.

"Kazuha and I have planned a special event for one lucky guest as a way of saying sorry for everything we've put you through."

"That's strange wording," Ran mused. "Normally wouldn't he say something like 'as a way of saying thank you for supporting us?' Why would he say sorry for everything we've put you through?"

Meanwhile, Heiji kept describing the event which was going to take place.

"In this mystery hunt we will provide clues of locations. At each location will be a hint to the next one and after the second location will be the hint of the site of our prize. If you solve the given riddle properly, you should be able to easily find the exact location of the next one. Of course, the chosen guest can always have audience participation if they need it. Is everybody ready for an adventure?"

The guests cheered enthusiastically, not fazed at all by the bizarre turn of events. It was Heiji Hattori after all. He probably was dying to insert some kind of mystery into the wedding plan. Ran played along, cheering and clapping her hands. The sudden turn of events was a welcome change from the romantic atmosphere from earlier.

"Drum roll please," Heiji called to the band. The drum kit player began a loud roll on the suspended cymbal as Heiji picked out a name from a black velvet hat.

"Ran Mouri, you have been chosen as our candidate for the 'Felicitas Venari' mystery hunt!" He announced, his eyes gleaming.

Ran felt all eyes in the garden turn on her as she began striding toward the stage, determined to get this "mystery contest" over with.

* * *

From the edge of the forest, the man grinned, his azure blue eyes glinting in the darkness, as he listened to the events in the garden through his blue tooth.

"And so our plot thickens," he whispered deviously.

* * *

**O.o What's he planning? And what will happen with this "mystery hunt?"**

**Read the next chapter to find out!**

**Please review, it would mean a lot(:**

**xoxoxoxo,**

**~Agentlebreeze**


	4. The Nostalgic Memory

**Hey! Just a tip, try reading this chapter with classical music playing in the background. I had some playing while I was writing it, and it made this chapter SO much more intense!(:**

**xoxoxo,**

**~Agentlebreeze**

* * *

"The clues of the locations will be given in the form of Haiku," Heiji described. "_Are you ready_ to start the mystery hunt?"

"Might as well get it over with," Ran said with a half-smile. The guests started to cheer eagerly completely oblivious to her unwillingness.

"Let the mystery hunt begin!" Heiji declared as streamers shot out from the edge of the stage. By this point the guests were so completely caught up with the excitement that they were beginning to act like a studio audience. Ran sighed. A while ago she would have been thrilled to be offered this chance, but now she couldn't care less.

"Your first Haiku is this," Heiji began in a suspenseful tone. The guests immediately hushed up, and began to lean toward the stage.

_"Majestic white swan,_

_ Completes her exultant song,_

_And joy fills her heart"_

Ran froze, her heart thumping painfully in her chest. She could feel the Haiku spark one of her memories. It was something she had worked hard to block out since the disappearance of Shinichi and Conan's departure afterward, when she was struggling to pull out of her depression phase.

"No," she thought desperately. "Please don't resurface and bring back that horrible pain!"

It was too late. She was beginning to recall the events from that day.

* * *

_Five year old Ran and Shinichi were sitting at the back of a church watching a marriage ceremony take place. They both really wanted to run around and play tag, but Eri had specifically told them to sit still and not make a sound while the wedding of old friend from high school was taking place. Yukiko who was also invited, laughed and told her that they were kids and she did not have to be so strict, however Eri just scoffed and said that they needed to learn proper etiquette. Eventually Yukiko gave up and promised the two children chocolates if they could behave._

_ "Eri-san is so scary," Shinichi muttered nervously biting his nails._

_ "Pardon?" Ran asked, turning to look at him._

_ Not wanting to risk one of Ran's famous punches which were quite powerful even at that age, Shinichi hastily denied saying anything and went back to watching the ceremony._

_ "Yukie-san looks so pretty!" Ran whispered, her eyes sparkling. "In that dress she looks like a beautiful white swan!"_

_ Shinichi rolled his eyes. At his age, he was very mature (thank-you-very-much), and would rather spend his time playing with his toy cars, or solving mysteries with his Tou-san, then dreaming of fantasy worlds like Ran. _

"_There was something really pretty about Ran's smile though," Shinichi thought, then immediately blushed and turned away._

"_Don't you think she looks so happy Shinichi?" Ran continued, oblivious to Shinichi's red cheeks. "It must feel so nice to have so much joy in your heart"_

"_Maybe one day..," Shinichi started, and then looked at Ran and saw that she was not paying attention._

"_Mmm?" Ran asked. "Sorry what?"_

"_Never mind," Shinichi said with a small smile on his five year old face._

* * *

A tear leaked from Ran's eye and she hastily tried to white it away. It had been a long time since she had thought of that particular memory. She missed Shinichi, no matter what nonsense she spewed about not being able to forgive him. She just wanted him back by her side.

"I know where the first location is," Ran said quietly, her voice shaking.

"Already?" Heiji asked with his eyebrows raised.

Without another word Ran spun around and stalked off toward the reception room with many guests on her trail.

* * *

"I don't know what that Haiku was, but it really seemed to get a major reaction from her," Heiji whispered into a Bluetooth. "Mind spilling the beans?"

"Sorry, it's a private memory," replied the man on the other end. His bangs flopped into his eyes as he smiled at the ground and let out a nostalgic smile.

* * *

**Hope you liked it! Please review.**


	5. The Things She Goes Through for Him

**Hey there! Thanks for all the love and support from anybody who reviewed, it meant a lot:) It encouraged me to update faster:)**

**Just to let you know, this chapter is why the story is rated T. Anyway, please enjoy!**

**xoxoxo,**

**~Agentlebreeze**

* * *

Ran leaned against the door of the entrance to the wedding hall, breathing shallowly. Behind her the guests who had followed her there waited anxiously.

"Is the next Haiku here?" An oba-sama asked eagerly.

"Yes it is," Ran confirmed with a shaky voice. She stood up straight and began to walk slowly towards the alter, her footsteps echoing aroundthe empty wedding hall. She stroked her fingers across the piano as she walked by then stopped at the floral covered white arch which Kazuha and Heiji had stood under during the ceremony. Beneath it was single rolled parchment with a silk red ribbon tied around it.

Ran sank to her knees. Was it possible that _he_ was involved in this? Nobody else would have known that memory but him. Only _he_ would know that she would be able to make the connection to their childhood because of that Haiku. Could he-

"RAAAN!" Heiji yelled exasperatedly. Looking up she saw that everybody in the room was looking at her with odd expressions upon their faces.

"_As I was saying_," Heiji continued. "Congratulations Ran on finding the second riddle! Now open the roll and read out your next Haiku."

The guests all held their breaths as Ran opened the scroll, fumbling briefly with the ribbon. Holding the scroll with unstable hands, Ran began to read the next location out loud.

_ "The wind thrashes us_

_ But the earth holds us strongly_

_ We slumber in peace"_

Ran covered her mouth with her hands as her eyes widened in horror. This couldn't be a random guess. Nobody should know about any of these memories but him.

"Ran-," Heiji started, but by then Ran had already sprinted out of the room with the ever curious guests on her tail.

As Ran was running toward the location, she could feel the memory resurfacing.

"Why?" She thought, gritting her teeth.

* * *

_Ran was lost. Not mentally lost, she didn't need a psychologist. Ran just had no idea where she was. In every direction Ran looked, all that filled her vision was trees. She collapsed her back sliding down a Sakura tree as she sat, put her head in her hands and began to weep as rain poured down around her._

* * *

_ The day had all started with Itsumi sensei saying that the teachers had decided to take the Teitan junior high students on an unexpected 3 day field trip to the nature reserve. Ran had been bubbling with excitement. It was not often that she got to venture out into nature parks, as whenever Mouri Kogoro was lucky enough to get a customer, it was always a problem situated in the city. Shinichi however, was a total opposite to her boundless joy. _

_ "Why would you be excited to be shipped off to the woods?" He asked Ran grumpily as they waited outside the bus for its departure. "All there is out there is bugs, wild animals and more bugs."_

_ "Of course __YOU wouldn't understand," Ran responded scathingly. "I bet YOUR __parents took you wherever you wanted to go when you were a child. I__ however, am not so lucky!"_

_ "I'm sorry Ran," Shinichi said softly. "I forgot that your parents hated outdoorsy trips."_

_ "It's okay," She said, a smile creeping through her angry front. It was really hard to remain angry at Shinichi._

_ "LOOK HOW LOVEY DOVEY OUR MARRIED COUPLE IS!" Sonoko shouted with a look of glee upon her face._

_ Shinichi and Ran turned away from each other with a blush creeping on both of their faces._

_ "I think I see Aizawa, talk to you later Ran!" Shinichi said hastily, than hurried off._

_ Ran glared daggers at her best friend._

_ "Ohohoho, I couldn't help it, you were ignoring me," Sonoko justified, sweat beads gathering on her forehead._

_ Suddenly a girl walked by and shoved Ran into the side of the bus with her shoulder._

_ "OI! Watch where you're going!" Sonoko snapped at her, irritated with her superior behavior._

_ Totally ignoring Sonoko, the girl turned around and Ran gasped. She could have been a supermodel. The girl had luscious long blond hair that fell in gentle waves down her back and pale blue eyes. She wore her Teitan junior high uniform with her skirt pulled up to the shortest length flattering her long legs, and the first few buttons of her jacket open showing off her cleavage. _

_ "Stay away from Shinichi," She said to Ran, her cold eyes emitting immense waves of hatred._

_ With much effort Ran managed to find her voice again. "Why should I? Who are you to tell me what to do?"_

_ The girl let out a harsh bark of laughter. "Why shouldn't you? You're a tomboyish and dumpy. Your hairstyle is SO 1980's, and on top of that, you practice karate of all things. Like, talk about femininity suicide! Shinichi deserves WAY better. He deserves someone who has the looks, and knows how to use it. You, my dear, are not worthy of him. So go shrivel up in a corner and die."_

_ Ran fought the tears that threatened to brim over. "I won't stop being around him just because you're insecure," she retorted in a haughty tone. "So dream on."_

_ The girl sneered at her. "You just made a big mistake," she said threateningly, then stalked off._

_ Ran looked over to Sonoko to see her steaming. "The girl's name is Haruna Maria," she said, spitting out the name. "She's a very influential person at Teitan due to intimidation."_

_ "So basically she's a bully," Ran seethed._

_ "Basically," Sonoko agreed. "Be careful Ran, she's clearly made you her next target."_

_ "Students, you can now board the bus!" Itsumi-sensei declared in her usual peppy tone._

_ Ran and Sonoko boarded the bus and sat down both with high anticipation for the field trip, forgetting all about Maria. The entire trip Ran practically bounced up and down on her seat and was asking a continuous stream of questions about nature parks, successfully managing to tick Sonoko off. A couple seats back Aizawa was laughing at Shinichi._

_ "Your girlfriends acting as if she's on drugs Kudo," he said jokingly._

_ "Shut up," Shinichi said, a blush tinting his cheeks, causing Aizawa to double over laughing._

* * *

_ When the bus pulled in Ran was bubbling with excitement. She couldn't wait to get to the calm beautiful serenity of the nature park. Getting of the bus, Ran was so engrossed in sight seeing that she did not realize that somebody was right in front of her._

_ *BANG!* Ran and the girl crashed into each other and both fell back painfully._

_ "I'm so sorry, are you alright?" Ran apologized, concerned._

"_You should be you slut. Honestly, how you live with yourself after the things you do is a mystery to me," the girl snapped, brushed herself off then walked away._

"_What was that about? Ran asked Sonoko, more hurt than confused. She had done nothing to deserve that. Of all people, she was the last one most people would think of as a slut._

"_I think it is about this note," Sonoko said grimly, holding up a crumpled piece of paper. "Maria appeared to have been passing this around while we were on the bus."_

"_Dear girls," Ran read. "It was common knowledge that there is no way on earth that our handsome prince Shinichi-kun would be attracted to a hideous and dreadful girl like Mouri Ran. However, I recently discovered that he is being forced to pretend to care for her. You see, Ran knocked him out one day with some pills and took a picture that looks like they were doing *unspeakable things* and uses it to blackmail him. Our poor handsome Shinichi, caught up in her twisted game just to protect his honor! Join me girls, in uniting against this foul witch who does not deserve our Shinichi-kun! Let's fight to win our Shinichi-kun back from her evil clutches!_

_~Haruna Maria _

"_This is complete garbage! How can anyone even believe this? It doesn't even sound realistic!" Ran cried hysterically._

"_The problem is, Maria's influence is enough to force the girls to go along with it," Sonoko stated miserably. "She has us cornered."_

_Everything suddenly got very blurry, and Ran could feel herself blacking out. She welcomed unconsciousness, as it was better than having to deal with all the humiliation Maria had caused. Ran distantly heard a voice calling her name, but she was too far away to answer it._

* * *

"_Ran? Are you awake?"_

_Ran squeezed her eyes shut, and then opened them. Slowly, as things began to come into focus, she could make out the rough shape of Shinichi sitting at her bedside._

"_Ran, what happened?" Shinichi asked with concern clear in his eyes. "Sonoko wouldn't tell me. She said that it's your job to."_

_Looking over she saw Sonoko leaning on the doorway, nodding her head vigorously. Ran smiled. "It's nothing Shinichi-kun. I was so excited this morning that I forgot to eat breakfast! I didn't even remember until now. I'm such a featherbrain."_

_Shinichi shook his head. He could tell she was hiding something. "You really had me scared Ran! Go eat something okay?" He scolded affectionately, ruffled her hair and then left. _

_Sonoko exploded. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, NOT TELLING HIM? NOW HE CAN'T HELP YOU!"_

_Ran let a bitter smile overtake her fake one. "If I told Shinichi and he exploded, it would just make the girls hate me more. They would think I sensed the bad situation like a rat and blackmailed him into doing that too. No matter what, they will never believe me. It was a smart move of Maria's._

_Walking outside, the girls discovered that Itsumi- sensei was planning on taking them on a nature walk._

"_You up to it Ran?" She inquired. "You can always stay here and rest."_

"_No, I'm good!" Ran said cheerfully, resolute not to let Maria ruin her trip._

_The Teitan High Juniors then were instructed to form a single line as they walked through the trail. Ran was having the time of her life, laughing with Sonoko, and taking hundreds of pictures. All of a sudden, as she stopped to take a picture, she felt someone bump into her and scream._

"_MY GUCCI EARING! YOU STUPID INCORRINGABLE WENCH, HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO ME?"_

_Ran turned around in dread. Voila, there stood Maria with an expression of loathing twisting her beautiful features. _

"_Tell you what," Maria said with a sly smile. "Go fetch my earing from the forest for me and I'll dispel those rumours about you."_

"_The rumours YOU started," Ran said fuming._

"_Water under the bridge my dear." She said with a dismissive wave, and a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "So will you take me up on this offer?"_

_Shoving Maria aside, Ran treaded determinedly into forest. After a few paces into the forest Ran found the earring, picked it up and prepared to leave. _

_*GROWL*_

_Ran's eyes widened as her heartbeat began to pick up. She began to inhale and exhale quickly as she turned and ran deeper into the forest, no thought on her mind but to get away from the source of the roaring. _

_That was where she was now, so hopelessly lost that she collapsed against a Sakura tree and put her head in her hands. Tears fell through the gap between her fingers and soaked her shirt, as rain began to pour down hard._

* * *

"_RAN? RAAAAAN WHERE ARE YOU?" Ran heard a voice calling distantly. She slowly began to come to consciousness._

"_I must have fallen asleep after crying," Ran thought to herself. While she was sleeping the rain had stopped leaving a tranquil calm through the forest._

"_I'm over here!" Ran managed to yell out in her grogginess. Shinichi ran over and enveloped Ran in a hug._

"_Shinichi wha-?" Ran began, but Shinichi cut her off before she could finish._

"_Ran, do you not trust me? How could you NOT tell me that those girls were bullying you because of me?" He shouted angrily grabbing her shoulders._

"_Who told you?" Ran asked sighing._

"_Sonoko did. Then I forced that swine Maria to tell me what she did with you."_

"_I didn't want to burden you," Ran said quietly._

_Shinichi laughed hollowly. "Ran, do you know what you remind me of?"_

"_What?" she questioned._

"_You remind me of the trees. No matter how much the wind knocks their branches, they always have their roots solidly in the earth."_

_Ran smiled. Slowly she managed to stand up, and then faced Shinichi. "Come on, let's get back the others."_

* * *

"_So what did Shinichi say to Maria in the end?" Ran asked Sonoko after getting back._

"_It wasn't pretty. Your husband can be quite intimidating when he wants to. After the display he gave, nobody in their right mind could ever doubt that he was being blackmailed," She replied with a simper._

"_DON'T CALL HIM MY HUSBAND!" Ran bellowed._

"_Okay, okay! Look, now everybody's staring!" Sonoko chastised._

_Ran blushed beet red. Everybody in the room was indeed staring at them. She ducked her head, and tried to ignore Sonoko's peal of laughter._


	6. Reunited, At Last

Ran fell to her knees. In front of her loomed the only Sakura tree in the forest surrounding the garden. However, what really caused her inner turmoil was a parchment which was strung from the tree by a scarlet ribbon.

"Are you okay Ran?" Heiji asked softly.

Ran whipped around at his voice and grabbed Heiji by the collar.

"_Where is he?" _Ran growled through clenched teeth.

"Where is who?" Heiji asked, sweat beads forming on his forehead.

"Don't play with me! Where is that imbecile who hasn't shown his face around here for three years and now suddenly tries to take a trip down memory lane! _WHERE IS SHINICHI?_

Around them, guests stood uncomfortably, some clucking their tongues in disapproval of the groom being rough handled by Ran.

"Ran," Heiji began timidly. "Even I don't know where he has hidden himself. I can only communicate with him through the blue tooth he gave me, but he hasn't responded. The only way to find out where he is would be to read the last Haiku and then finish the mystery hunt."

Ran angrily released Heiji, then reached up to the tree branch and snatched the parchment. Ripping the ribbon off, she roughly opened the paper and began to read.

_ "Streams shoot through the air, _

_ Knitting a liquid design,_

_ A magical scene"_

Ran began to dash off toward the garden, reminiscing about one of the last times she saw Shinichi as she ran.

* * *

_Ran gasped as an icy metal can brushed her cheek. Turning around she saw Shinichi with a smirk on his face holding out a can of coke to her. Shinichi had taken Ran out to tropical land that day in order to celebrate her winning the city karate championships._

_ "You looked kind of thirsty," he remarked, handing a can to her. Of course the Sherlock Holmes freak would be able to pick up on something as trivial as that._

_ "Oh thanks," Ran responded, looking down as a small blush tinted her cheeks._

_ Shinichi glanced at his watch. "Let's go, we'll be late!" He said anxiously. Seizing Ran's hand, he began to run._

_ "Huh?" Ran asked confused as she focused on keeping up with his fast pace. "Late for what?"_

_ Instead of replying Shinichi kept running in an unknown direction. Climbing down some stairs he came to a sudden halt in the middle of a blue and white compass like pattern._

_ "All right," He sighed in relief. "We made it."_

_ "What are you talking about?" Ran asked suspiciously. "I'm not seeing anything."_

_ "Just be patient," Shinichi answered secretively. Glancing at his watch once more he began to count down._

_ "10…..9…...8…..7…..6…..5…..4…..3…..2..and 1!"_

_ Streams of water shot out from jets all around them. Ran gasped, and looked around in wonder. "Wow!" she breathed._

_ "The fountains are programmed to spout every two hours," Shinichi said with a twinkle in his eyes. "So what do you think Ran?" he asked smiling_

_ "It's great," Ran said appreciatively, a blush appearing on her cheeks._

* * *

Abruptly, Ran came to a halt in front of the fountain in the garden."Shinichi!" She screamed in frustration. "Where are you?"

The guests openly gawked at her emotional outburst. They began to whisper among themselves. To Ran, most of them sounded like "Girl has lost it," and "It's insane getting worked up like this at her close friend's wedding!"

"Let them think what they want," Ran thought to herself, exhaling in attempt to calm herself. It didn't work very well. Ran could feel tears threatening to cascade down her face. It was so unfair. Why was she the only one that never got her happy ending? Everyone else did. Ran was the only one she knew who had no one to phone when she was lonely, no one to comfort her in their arms, or no one's shoulder to cry on. She felt so lonely, so lonely that her heart felt like it was about to shatter into a million pieces.

"I wish it would all end," Ran whispered quietly to herself, as more tears trickled down from the corners of her eyes.

"Are you sure about that?" A familiar voice behind her questioned gently. Ran's pulse picked up as her chest squeezed tightly in pain. Could it be him? Strong arms wound around her before she could turn around and see the perpetrators face.

"Hear me out before you make any judgements okay?" The person with a voice suspiciously similar to Shinichi's asked gruffly. Ran nodded meekly, too caught up in the fact that Shinichi might possibly be back with her to talk.

And so he began to spin a tale of suspense, tragedy, fear, and secretiveness. One where the right decision would always be the one that hurt him the most, where he was imprisoned in a state where his cocky self would never be able to shine. One where he would have to make choices that would affect many people, because of a simple decision of his to check up on suspicious behavior. One where he would be forced to make difficult decisions about who he would trust, regardless of their background.

"Three weeks ago, as this case nearly wrapped up I was shot with a bullet in the leg by the last non captured member of the organization. I wanted to come see you so badly, but the doctors told me I was in critical shape, and if I even tried to leave the hospital, I might as well jump off a bridge for all the good it would do me. They confined me to my bed and had guards on the door to stop me from making any attempt to leave. I'm so sorry Ran," He finished, his voice cracking. "After I was out of critical condition, Miyano gave me the antidote to get out of that accursed form."

"Why didn't you tell me anything?" Ran asked bitterly. "Do you _really_ think I'm that untrustworthy, or that I can't take care of myself? I bet you and _Shiho_ mocked poor little old Ran, so incapable of even-"

Shinichi brusquely spun Ran around and furiously grabbed her by her shoulders. One look from his smouldering azure eyes silenced Ran.

_ "Do you think I would be able to live with myself if something happened to you? The thought that it was entirely my fault for getting you involved in this situation and not being able to protect you well enough, for being such a useless person that I not only got myself into this foolhardy situation, but pulled you down with me? I couldn't. I had to protect you. It was the only way out, the best way, you have to und-"_

Ran flung herself into Shinichi's arms, effectively ending his hysterical ramblings. "I was just so frightened that you would never come back, that I would spend the rest of eternity waiting for your phone calls while watching everybody else's life go by," she cried, holding balls of his shirt in her hands.

Shinichi stroked her back gently. "Ran," Shinichi began reassuringly. "I love you. I have loved you since we were little, and I have grown up loving you, watching you shine brightly every day. Even though it would've seemed impossible to the me before Conan, but turning into Conan made me love you even more. I got to see your maternal side, your caring side, and I missed constantly being with you so much that it felt that there was something missing in here," Shinichi said, pointing as his heart. "There was a part of me that was constantly gone, that only you could fill. I love you so much Ran and I want to continue loving you forever." Shinichi said, and then slowly began to disentangle himself from Ran who grudgingly let him go.

Shinichi got down on his non-injured leg, and slowly pulled out a black box. Ran's eyes widened, and she covered her mouth with a hand. Her heart beat picked up. He couldn't be-

"Ran," Shinichi said seriously. "Will you marry me?"

Ran couldn't speak. The giddiness welled up inside her after his speech was stopping her from forming words. So she just nodded, a single tear of happiness leaking out from the corner of her eye.

Shinichi broke out into a huge grin. He gently slid the ring on Ran's finger, then quickly stood up and pressed his lips to hers. They shared a deep and passionate kiss before Ran broke off and leaned towards Shinichi's ear.

"I will forgive you this time, but if you _ever_ leave me again with no explanation, I won't be so merciful." She murmured threateningly.

Shinichi smirked. "Will do," he whispered back, then pulled her back for a kiss.

* * *

**Thank you SO much** **reader,**** reviewers and subscribers of this story, it meant SO much! Just to let you know the memory from this story was from Detective Conan movie#4: Captured in her Eyes. Don't give up on this story yet though, I'm going to write an EPILOUGE soon! So stay tuned, and please review.**

**Xoxoxo,**

**Agentlebreeze**


	7. Her Confession: Epilogue 1!

Ran let out a long sigh, then rubbed her temples for stress relief as she watched the setting sun shine through the windows of the law firm in which she worked. The day had been long and harsh with no breaks, and she just wanted to go home and collapse.

"Just this page," She forced herself to concentrate. "Just this page and I'll be free to leave, and then I can go home and have a _nice_ long nap.

"Ran-San?" came a timid voice from the doorway.

"_Please, please, PLEASE_ let me be imagining things." Ran silently begged.

"There is some more paperwork left from the Sagawa case," Shigeru said apologetically, her eyes pleading for Ran's sympathy. "It apparently _has_ to be handed in by today."

Ran exhaled, and then smiled tiredly. "Here, I'll take it. I just finished with this paperwork anyway." It was pointless to be angry with Shigeru, who probably worked just as hard, if not harder than Ran to keep things organized.

"One more thing Shigeru-San?" Ran asked as her secretary was about to leave. "Please get me a cup of black coffee; I'm going to need all the caffeine I can get to finish this."

"Will do," Shigeru said with an understanding smile. She then gently closed the office door and walked away, the clicks of her platform heels on the marble tiles echoing throughout the empty office.

"Back to work," Ran thought exasperatedly, and then began to work on the new report which had been handed to her.

Sometimes Ran wondered why she had decided to follow in her mother's footsteps and become a lawyer. Right after though, she would realize that even though she had loved the idea of entering the exciting world of law, what had really motivated her was the fact that her job would be close to that of Shinichi's.

The minute that his name entered her mind, Ran was lost in fantasies of her husband. Though they had been married for 5 years already, Ran still could not get over how perfect he was. She always thought she must be the luckiest girl on the planet for being able to claim an extremely smart, strikingly handsome, and athletically skilled man like Shinichi all to herself. And the best part about it was that he cared for her deeply too, and would never intentionally hurt her. For most women, that kind of man only exists in movies.

Although sometimes being Shinichi's wife had its downsides. Being only twenty-five, Shinichi's major successes in his field, both in japan and overseas mixed with his extreme handsomeness had brought him lots of fame. When a guy was extremely famous with good looks, that would mean that he would have fan girls. And when those ferocious fan girls found out their darling Shinichi had a wife, things would get ugly very quickly when they saw her. Ran could not even remember the number of times she had been called hideous, despicable, and irritating _just_ because she had a claim on Shinichi that pulled him away from their claws. Just last week somebody had even had the nerve to accuse her of being a prostitute who had blackmailed Shinichi into marriage. The blackmail story was getting pretty old by now, seeing as to the eyes of the public, the only way an "ordinary, plain, working class girl" could be with a famous well known celebrity like Shinichi was through blackmail and other under handed tactics.

Nevertheless fan girls were easily handled by Ran and her karate, and though their words would sometimes pierce her heart like a sharp blade Shinichi was always there to mend it.

That thought alone brought her to the main reason for her lack of sleep, and the sadness welled up in her heart. Being such an internationally well-known detective, Shinichi was always receiving cases from police forces all around the world, begging him to help them out to solve their case as they need his extensive expertise for their impossible crime. Therefore Shinichi spent a great majority of his days travelling the world, and away from Ran. It wasn't as if he wanted to stay away. In fact, Shinichi used to try to stay at home as much as he could, because he didn't want to leave Ran all alone in their big house. But, although he tried to hide it, Ran could tell that Shinichi was bored without his mysteries to keep him on his feet. So Ran forced Shinichi to accept the mysteries, because the pain of knowing he was sacrificing his happiness for her was more than the ache of his absence. But even so, him being gone made it hard for her to sleep, which is why she was in such a vegetative state today. Especially with a certain confession she had to make to him which constantly was plaguing her thoughts.

For the next while, nothing could be heard in the office but the pitter-patter of Ran's fingers on the keyboard and her breathing which seemed to get slower and slower as her tiredness increased. Finally her nimble fingers came to a halt as she summed up the report and handed it to Shigeru-san, and then stumbled home in an exhausted stupor. Collapsing on the sofa, as the marble staircase was too far of a walk in her fatigued state; she let her eyes close and instantly fell asleep.

* * *

_Ran was dreaming of Shinichi. They were dancing in a magnificent ballroom, Ran in a red eighteenth century styled dress, and Shinichi in a stylish black suit, to a waltz which was playing softly in the background. As they twirled around, Shinichi pressed his lips to hers and they were lost in their own little world, totally oblivious to the other dancers. The kiss felt so real, so real that it couldn't be a dream-_

Ran's eyes flew open and she leaped off the sofa into a defensive crouch. "Who's there?" She growled.

"Easy there tiger," uttered a laughing voice from behind her.

Ran spun around, and then relaxed. There stood Shinichi with his hands in the air and a smirk on his face.

"Ran," He sighed pulling her into his arms. "I've missed you so much." He kissed her again, deeply this time, his mouth slowly trailing down to her jaw and then the base of her throat.

"I missed you too Shinichi," Ran breathed.

*****_**Growl**_*****

"It's time for breakfast for the lady," Shinichi announced grinning. Ran smiled sheepishly, and then daintily walked toward the direction of the kitchen, pulling Shinichi along behind her.

"Is it just me, or does Ran look a little unsteady on her feet?" Shinichi mentally questioned. "I hope she's not overworking herself to the point of exhaustion.

As soon as they entered the kitchen, Shinichi sat Ran down at the table and then began to cook breakfast, ignoring her feeble protests that _she_ should really be the one cooking for him after his long journey back. As soon as breakfast was ready, Shinichi sat it down on the table and watched Ran shoveled down her food. It was strange, because Ran never had any particular love for eggs before, yet now she ate it like she hadn't eaten in days. "She must not have been eating properly," Shinichi thought to himself.

"OH MY GOD IT'S 12:00 p.m. RIGHT NOW! I NEED TO GET TO WORK!" Ran shouted distracting Shinichi from his thoughts. He grabbed Ran's arm before she could get up. "Ran, relax. Today's Saturday, you have the day off."

"Oh. Right. It's Saturday," Ran said, then slowly exhaled with her eyes closed. Shinichi noticed that there were dark bags under her eyes that hadn't been there previously. It looked as if she had had many sleepless nights. Right now, Ran was slowly nodding off at the table, about a millimetre away from having her head land in her food. "Hey Ran," Shinichi said, trying to get her attention.

"WHAT?" Ran shrieked as she snapped her head up, her eyes as wide as saucepans. "Shut up," she said to Shinichi as he started chuckling at her reaction.

"Ran," Shinichi began again seriously. "I think you should go back to sleep for a while. I doubt you will be able to stay awake in this state anyway." Ignoring Ran's weak protests, he scooped her up and carried her to the master bedroom.

"Ugh," Shinichi mentally groaned. "Ran's gotten heavier since the last time I've seen her." He didn't dare tell her that though, as her Karate skills were still infamous, though she didn't continue lessons. Shinichi plopped her down on the master bed and then was about to leave when Ran's hand snaked out and grabbed a handful of his t-shirt.

"Shi..ni…chi…don't…leave," she mumbled sleepily. Smiling fondly, Shinichi sat back down on the bed, and began stroking Ran's back, until her breathing evened out and she fell into a deep slumber.

* * *

Ran's eyes fluttered open lazily. The nap had rejuvenated her, and for the first time in days she felt energy coursing through her veins.

"Ran-Chan, you're awake!" Stated a familiar girly voice from the foot of her bed. Looking up she saw Yukiko bouncing up and down, looking extremely excited.

"That can't be good," Ran thought to herself anxiously.

"Yukiko-San, why are you here?" She questioned, trying not to sound wary. Though Yukiko always had good intentions, her idea of a "girls' night out" was usually too much for Ran to handle.

"Shin-Chan wanted me to get you ready," Yukiko responded, with extremely high spirits. "When I'm done with you, every guy everywhere will be begging for your attention! I'm so glad I finally got the chance to get you dressed up!"

"Why am I getting dressed up?" Ran asked suspiciously.

"You're not allowed to know," Yukiko said mysteriously with a wink. Then she whisked Ran off to the bathroom for the next two hours.

* * *

"Thank-you for the ride Yukiko–San," Ran said gratefully as she stepped out of the shiny red convertible.

"You have fun tonight Ran-Chan," Yukiko said cheerfully. "And make sure you break the news to him!"

"How did you-" Ran began to ask, but Yukiko was already speeding away. Looking in front of her, Ran saw the very restaurant where Shinichi had taken her after changing back from Conan.

"We really have changed since then haven't we?" Ran thought to herself nostalgically. She then walked into the restaurant, trying not to show how off balance Yukiko's stilettoes made her.

"You must be Mrs. Kudo."

Looking up, Ran saw one of the Restaurant employees, smiling diligently at her.

"Yes, that's me," She replied nervously to him.

"Follow me please," the attendant instructed politely, walked off toward the direction of fancy French doors. Bracing herself, Ran followed him and pushed open the doors.

The effect was instantaneous. Every male eye in the room ogled at Ran, and Ran alone. Feeling extremely self-conscious, Ran glanced anxiously around the room trying to spot the attendant whom she had lost track of.

"I hope Yukiko-San didn't over do me," Ran thought apprehensively. Her hair was half up half down, with an elegantly bun at the top of her head, and she wore a backless long black dress, which flowed down to her ankles.

Ran felt strong arms wind possessively around Ran as a pair of lips brushed her cheeks. Glancing up she saw Shinichi's sapphire eyes burning with some hidden emotion.

"Could he be jealous?" Ran thought. "No, it couldn't be!"

Shinichi then smiled at her, all traces of his previous reaction gone. "Shall we go to our seats milady?" He inquired.

"Please, let's," Ran answered, happy at the prospect of not being in the center of the room. Shinichi pulled her along to the back of the room, to a seat with a beautiful view of the city skyline. He seated her down then removed his jacket and sat down as well. Ran tried not to stare. Smooth strong muscled were emphasized through his white dress shirt, and his hair was gelled into carful spikes. Though Shinichi looked incredible without even trying, right now he almost looked godly.

"Like what you see?" Shinichi asked smugly, breaking her reverie.

Ran blushed so red that her face was the colour of a tomato, which caused Shinichi to break out in laughter.

"So Shinichi," Ran started conversationally, after their orders were taken. "Why bring me out to dinner today?"

Shinichi laughed. "Take out your cellphone and look at the date Ran," he said still smiling.

Ran pulled out her cell from her black clutch. She stared at the screen in disbelief, her mouth forming a small "o."

Shinichi leaned across the table and gently kissed Ran on the lips. "Happy twenty-fifth birthday Ran," He said softly.

"Thank-you," she answered with a red tint on her cheeks.

Throughout the course of the meal the conversation weaved in and out of topics. They talked about Shinicihi's time in Paris where his latest case had taken place, and about Ran's recent law cases, as well as many other topics. Before they knew it the meals had come and were finished, and Shinichi had requested the bill from the waiter.

"Thanks for taking me out today Shinichi, it was nice," Ran said to him tenderly, looking out at the night city landscape.

"You deserve it Ran," Shinichi replied with a small smile upon his face.

"No seriously. You're going to make a great father, I can already tell," Ran declared.

Shinichi froze. It was as if every molecule in his body was rendered useless when she uttered that single phrase. He forced himself to speak. "Sorry Ran, what did you say?"

Ran turned towards him, and Shinichi saw a large beam spread across her face. "I said you are going to make a great father."

Shinichi looked wordlessly at Ran, his eyes as large as saucepans. "Does that mean that you're-?"

"Yes, I'm pregnant," Ran confirmed with a hundred watt smile on her face.

Shinichi broke out into a large grin. He was going to be a father.

_He was going to be a father!_

Shinichi pulled Ran in and kissed her passionately, and then leaned his forehead onto hers. "I think I'm the happiest man on the earth right now," He whispered.

"What, only the Earth? Not the universe?" Ran asked teasingly, and then kissed him again.

* * *

**I hope you liked it! because of a request from orangeleaf43 I decided to write 2 epilogues instead of one, which kind of makes no sense, but whatever! So stay tuned!**

**xoxoxo,**

**~Agentlebreeze**


End file.
